Honor & Duty
by shannyfish
Summary: Charlie Benanti is kidnapped. Summer of Supergirl prompt: Lucy Lane - Soldier First, Lawyer Always.


Lucy hadn't been part of the DEO for long, but she'd immediately picked up on the family that they'd created amongst themselves the moment she'd stepped into there as Major Lane. Now, working with them, she'd slowly nudged her way into their family...and she'd become to care for them all. Some of them did more than nudge, they shoved their way in. Adler and Benanti were two of those people. Lucy was still convinced that they were the ones who really were the determining factors on who got to be apart of the DEO family.

"Have you seen Alice?"

Lara had grabbed her arm and when Lucy looked at the other woman's face, concern filled her. "No, she's-she's out. What's wrong?" Normally Lara Benanti was the perky peppy bouncing face of the DEO. She was always smiling and always joking and there was often singing in the hallway. There weren't tears.

"The school just called," Lara explained, her voice breaking. "Someone went in and took Charlie."

"Took her?!"

"He had a gun-"

"Who could possibly-"

"The police are there," Lara went on. "The only-the only person I can think of is Flip."

"Flip?"

"Her father."

"We're going to get her back," Lucy promised. "We'll get her back and I'll make sure he stays away." She really wasn't in charge but with Henshaw, Danvers, Adler, and Harewood all out in the field together, she decided that it was okay for her to take charge. She pulled Benanti with her to the control area where Vasquez, Torres, and Berlanti were. "Vasquez, are you busy?"

"Just monitoring the team," Vasquez responded.

"I need cameras pulled from near National City Metro Elementary and I want you to look up everything for a Flip…" and she realized she didn't know all the information.

"Flip Benanti."

Lucy nodded. "I want you to use the latest photo we have of Charlie Benanti and start a facial search through-"

"On it, Ma'ams," Vasquez said quickly.

"We'll be at-"

"I'll be in touch."

* * *

As they drove, Lucy tried not to look over at Benanti too much, but it was hard to see this woman that she had always seen as so full of light, energy, and who was fierce be so vulnerable. Even though Lucy hadn't been around the DEO long, she absolutely adored Charlie Benanti plus the Harewood children. Everyone who worked at the DEO were automatically honorary aunts and uncles, that was just how it worked. These children were so bright and so hopeful, they were also intelligent and observant. "She's going to be okay," she voiced as she pulled up to the school.

"It has to be Flip-"

"I promise you, she's going to come home-"

"It's been almost four years, _why now_?"

Lucy didn't have an answer to that question, but they both got out of the car and moved towards where the police were. She already had the FBI badge ready and just hoped that they had something. Vasquez was working on getting other things they needed, but Lucy couldn't stop hoping that she'd get news that Adler and the others were on their way back. As confident as she was that she could handle this, both tracking down Charlie and the legal end afterwards...she knew that Lara needed her wife. Back-up in general also never hurt. "Listen to me, Lara," she said lowly and gently. "I know this is your daughter, but I need you to know that we're going to get her back. She's going to be fine. She's strong and smart and she's coming home." She reached out and stopped her, looking her straight in the eye. "But right now, I need you to breathe and control your emotions. We need to get in, get the information they have, and then get out...so that we can find her. Okay?"

In all honesty, Lucy didn't think that she'd be able to hold it together if the positions were switched. All she knew was that they needed to go in there level headed. The likelihood in her opinion that the locals would have more information than Vasquez could pull up was extremely low. She just hoped that perhaps they'd have some eyewitness accounts that would shed some light on identities and hopefully motivations involved. If this did involve Flip Benanti, then Lucy wanted as much as she could in order to bury him. She hadn't had time to look him up or felt the need to question Lara about why that relationship didn't work out...but she could tell that whatever it was...it wasn't good terms. Lara never mentioned it and Lucy couldn't once remember Charlie mentioning a father. If Flip hadn't been mentioned now, Lucy likely would have gone on to assume that Adler and Benanti's little family had always been as it was now.

"Yes," Lara finally breathed out.

"I'm not trying to be insen-"

"Let's just get her back," Benanti stated firmly.

So, they walked into the school together and Lucy just hoped that they had something to help them. The last thing they needed was to be wasting their time there instead of chasing down a lead somewhere else. Time was always of the essence when it came to kids and abductions. Even if Charlie's father was involved, it wouldn't be any different. He could move her quickly if he wanted to, they could be looking at them jumping to another state or international. Right now, though, she knew that she had to wait for the facts...and just hope that Charlie Benanti wasn't far.

* * *

The only thing that police had given them was the immediate information that it wasn't just one person, but a small group. When they were finally talk to the teacher, it seemed like Lara was certain that it was her ex-husband. There were things that the teacher had said about one of the men seeming to be familiar with Charlie and how he talked and acted...but their faces had been covered...so they just had to _assume_ that it had been Flip Benanti with others.

As they made their way back to the vehicle, her phone went off. It was the DEO and she knew who had to be on the other end. "Tell me you have something, Vasquez," Lucy said as the phone was pressed to her ear. All the while, she didn't stop moving. She got into the vehicle and started it up. They didn't have time to waste.

"We've gotten a couple of matches to Charlie's facial structure," Vasquez began with. "I was also able to gather pictures of the four men that abducted her. No faces, but there's a tattoo that two of them have on their arm. It's a symbol on it. The database comes back as it belonging to a military mercenary group. Mostly ex-Marines that have been dishonorably discharged."

"What did you find out about Flip Benanti? Could he be involved?" Lucy questioned as she switched the phone over to speaker so that Lara could hear too. This was information that they both needed to hear.

"He was sentenced to four years in prison, but he got out about six months ago," Vasquez explained. "They let him out for good behavior. He's supposed to be on probation, but from the looks of it, his tracker doesn't move…"

Lucy looked over to Benanti. "You've told me part of the story, but I need to know more…"

So, a bit reluctantly, Benanti went over what had happened between her and her now ex-husband which led her to the DEO and the life she had now. She went on about how Charlie didn't even know him and that she really only knew Alice. She'd ask about her father, but she never pushed for an answer. "He's never tried to contact us since we moved here," Lara said. "We've always been safe…protected…"

"Vasquez, so there's no clues to Flip Benanti being in the area?"

"From what I can see, it looks like he's not even in this state," Vasquez said. "It would go against his probation. If he's here, then he's got his ankle monitor rigged and he's covering his tracks. So far, I haven't gotten a match to his face on any pictures. He definitely seems to know where the cameras are because in the ones with Charlie, the men are always facing away or have a hood or hat covering their face."

In her heart she was a soldier and she was a lawyer, she believed in duty and honor...she believed in rules and consequences. Time had taught her that the world didn't care for any of those things. It was cruel and unforgiving...and yet it was beautiful and surprising. She wasn't going to risk one of the best things in the world getting hurt because of the rules. "Vasquez, can you hack into the ankle monitor?"

"What are you thinking, Ma'am?"

"I want you to set off the monitor so that his probation officer has to check in on him," Lucy said. "I need to know if he's where he's supposed to be or not. Right now, I'm going to _presume_ that he's here...that he's involved...until we know differently. Vasquez, you can monitor the situation?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Vasquez replied quickly. "Also, check your phone for coordinates. Berlanti has sent you everything we have as far as sightings of Charlie via cameras has yielded thus far."

"Does she look okay?" Lara asked suddenly.

"She looks straight into the camera every time," Vasquez reported. "That's why the facial recognition picked up on it so quickly." There was a beat of silence. "She doesn't appear to be hurt, she just looks sad and worried."

In that moment, Lucy realized that that had to have been something the girl was taught. With your parents being in something like the DEO, it only made sense to prepare your child. Lucy had taken self defense growing up. She still swore that her father would have been happier if she and Lois had been boys. He'd taught her a lot of things growing up, but Lucy didn't think she'd have ever known to look at a camera or something equally as simple and yet important as that.

"I've got it," Lucy said as the coordinates came up on her phone. They were all timestamped and from the looks of it, the one that had been from half an hour before wasn't too far away. "Keep us updated."

"Always."

* * *

They were getting closer.

It was so tense. Lara was having a hard time keeping still in the car and Lucy knew that it had to be hard because she didn't have Alice right there with her. They'd heard from the DEO and back up was on their way. That meant Adler along with everyone else who had been out in the field with her. Lucy just hoped that it would ease things. Of course, the one thing that would really ease the tension and the upset would be having Charlie back.

They had to do it right.

If they didn't do things by the book, then they could make things worse in the long run.

She wouldn't compromise the situation.

Lucy would ensure that they were all protected.

Charlie.

Adler.

Benanti.

All of them.

"We need to wait for backup if we get there before them," Lucy said as she looked over at Benanti as she drove towards the location they believed that they'd finally catch up with Flip and his people...and Charlie. The thing was, Lucy was by default a soldier...but all she kept thinking was about her duty as a lawyer. It wasn't just because of her honor (to her country, to the DEO, to Adler & Benanti, but also to herself), but also because she knew exactly what her lawyer skills could mean once this was all over. She wanted a happy ending. They all needed that ending.

They pulled up near the cabin they were fairly sure they'd find Charlie. She sucked in a breath and looked over to the clock on her dash. She couldn't be sure how long it would take for the others to get there. All she knew was that they were supposed to and they really _should_ wait for the backup. There was no reason to believe that Flip Benanti would harm Charlie, though he obviously didn't know how to prove that (since he'd taken her by force, with a weapon, and with a team).

"I can't-"

Lara's hand was already on the door handle to get out of the vehicle, but Lucy reached over and grabbed her arm. Her eyes on the other woman's. "Look, I might not be a mother, but I care about your daughter…" She let that sink in for a moment as Benanti just stared at her. Lucy took a breath before continuing. "If we go in...we're putting Charlie at risk. We'll be outnumbered." It was all true. It wasn't a cover or a stall. "There will be an exchange of shots...and there is a higher chance of Charlie being hit." She really let that one sink in. "Backup is coming… Backup that's faster, stronger, and is bulletproof…"

"She has to be _so scared_." Benanti sounded so upset and concerned, her voice breaking as she spoke.

Lucy's heart broke and she knew that Benanti was right. How could any five year old in this type of situation _not_ be upset and scared? Charlie wasn't her kid, but Lucy knew that once this was all over, _she_ was going to want to hug her.

The moment that the other SUV pulled up, Supergirl, and J'onn J'onzz landing nearby...Lucy and Benanti were immediately out and moving towards them. Lucy watched as Adler and Benanti took a moment to embrace and it seemed to settle Lara's nerves a little.

"We're going to do this," J'onn J'onzz said. "We're going to do this the smart and safe way… Kara and I will go in first, we'll get Charlie to safety, but let's not forget that we don't want to kill these men...just apprehend them."

* * *

In the end, it was a team effort that got Charlie back. It was better that way. It meant that there was less of a compromise with Adler and Benanti there. It also meant that there were more witnesses. It just meant that Flip Benanti was never going to be able to hurt Charlie or endanger her life in any way in the future. Lucy would see to it. The entire time, she'd been keeping notes and making sure that everything was done by the book. J'onn might have ensured that Lara and Charlie were kept safe for the last nearly four years, but Lucy would ensure that they remained safe.

She watched the family as they reunited. Harewood and Supergirl were taking care of Flip and the men who had helped him. Watching Adler, Benanti, and Charlie reminded Lucy exactly why she did what she did...all of it...being a soldier and being a lawyer. The family was hugging and kissing each other and saying things that she couldn't hear. They were picture perfect even in that moment. It had been worth it all...and it always would be.

* * *

The End.


End file.
